The Delhi government came up with the idea of the ‘odd-even’ scheme to reduce the number of cars on its roads to tackle pollution. How has space-starved Singapore fared in its battle against the car?
Tackling monster jams
Singapore has gone further than any other major city to avoid the monster jams that have blighted Asian metropolises such as Jakarta or Manila. Singapore has deployed road tolls, increased spending on public transport and a licence fee that bumps up the cost of an average vehicle to over $80,000
However the model faces mounting criticism thanks to rush-hour jams that have frustrated commuters, surging vehicle prices after a freeze on car numbers, and public transport breakdowns, according to AFP
‘Certificate of entitlement’
The authorities’ main tool is the certificate of entitlement (COE). Every potential car buyer must bid for a COE and the cost is added to the vehicle price. The current cost of a COE for an average family car is almost Sg$50,000, pushing the price of a Toyota Corolla to Sg$114,000. But COEs fluctuate depending on demand and at their high point four years ago, the same car cost Sg$159,000
Congestion charge
Other key measures include controlling the number of vehicles on the road and charging tolls on main roads at busy times. Authorities last month decided to freeze the number of private cars on the road from February for at least two years, citing land scarcity. But the decision sparked anger and was followed by a jump in the price of COEs by several thousand dollars, AFP adds
Traffic in London
Other places echo Singapore’s approach—London has a congestion charge while Paris sometimes orders some private cars off the road due to air pollution—but they are unlikely to copy the city-state’s tougher measures